"The State of Israel ... will ensure complete equality of social and political
rights of all its inhabitants irrespective of religion ... it will guarantee freedom
of religion and conscience." - May 1948)

Israel has never experienced a similar opportunity to end the decades-old fundamentalist Orthodox hold over its religious Jewish life.

The unfolding election campaigning provides further validation to Hiddush's contention as to the major role that the clash of religion-&-state can potentially play if properly positioned in shaping Israel's future political trajectory. Avigdor Lieberman (whose political focus on "anti-halakha state" we've described in detail) continues to reap the gains.

Hiddush just scored a victory in the Jerusalem District Court in a freedom-of-information case, involving a huge amount of governmental grant monies, exceeding one hundred million NIS, provided to mostly Orthodox religious outreach organizations by multiple governmental agencies

This week temporarily halted the removal-from-office procedure, which Interior Minister Deri (Leader of Shas) initiated against Mayor of Tiberias Ron Kobi. Kobi has become a symbol and lightning rod, as a crusader against religious coercion.

Since 1977, when the Right first won the Israeli elections, and the Israeli "Mr. TV" Haim Yavin, who has led the newscast since 1968, opened the election broadcast with the words: "There's a mahapach (upheaval)!" there haven’t been many elections that had the potential of producing another “upheaval”.